In a nail-biting Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri clinched victory after a fierce race-long battle, narrowly beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to the finish line. Leclerc, who started from pole, fought valiantly throughout the 51-lap race on the challenging streets of Baku, but ultimately had to settle for second after being overtaken by Piastri following the pit stop phase.
Leclerc led the early stages, maintaining his pole position until the pit stops. Piastri emerged ahead shortly after, and the race evolved into a tense four-way battle for the lead, with Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz also in contention. Despite the Monegasque’s strong defence and determined driving, his Ferrari struggled with tire degradation in the closing laps, allowing Piastri to pull away slightly. This left Leclerc vulnerable to attacks from Perez and Sainz, turning the final stages of the race into a high-stakes fight for the podium.
The tension peaked on the penultimate lap when Perez attempted an overtake on Leclerc. The move resulted in a dramatic collision with Sainz, sending both cars into the barriers and out of the race. Leclerc managed to avoid the chaos and hold onto second place as the race finished under a Virtual Safety Car.
Despite missing out on the win, Leclerc’s performance was one of resilience and determination, marking his best result of the season so far. He reflected afterward on the “frustration” of not being able to convert pole position into victory but expressed satisfaction with the podium finish.
Behind Piastri and Leclerc, George Russell capitalised on the Perez-Sainz crash to secure an unexpected third place for Mercedes, while Lando Norris put in a strong drive to take fourth after passing Max Verstappen late in the race.
The next stop on the 2024 Formula 1 calendar will be the Singapore GP, with the paddock travelling straight to Marina Bay for the second round of this double header on Sunday, September 22
